3 states say they denied Russia request to monitor electionOKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma and at least two other states said Friday that they have denied efforts by Russian officials to be present at polling stations during the election, requests the U.S. State Department's spokesman dismissed as "nothing more than a PR stunt." The Oklahoma secretary of state's office said it received a letter in August from Russia's consulate general in Houston seeking to have one of its officers present at a voting precin...

Clinton, Trump set for last debate as ugly race nears finishWASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump's ugly and acrimonious battle for the White House is barreling toward the end, with the candidates taking the debate stage Wednesday night for one final primetime showdown. For Trump, the debate is perhaps his last opportunity to turn around a race that appears to be slipping away from him. His predatory comments about women and a flood of sexual assault accusations have deepened his unpopular...

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JULIE PACE, The Associated Press White House CorrespondentAssociated Press

Social Security recipients to get tiny increase in benefitsWASHINGTON — Millions of Social Security recipients and federal retirees will get a 0.3 percent increase in monthly benefits next year, the fifth year in a row that older Americans will have to settle for historically low raises. There was no increase this year. Next year's benefit hike will be small because inflation is low, driven in part by lower fuel prices. The federal government announced the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, Tuesday. ...

High school graduation rate hits record high of 83.2 percentWASHINGTON — The nation's high school graduation rate reached a record 83.2 percent, continuing a steady increase that shows improvement across all racial and ethnic groups, according to federal data released Monday. President Barack Obama welcomed the higher rate as "good news." But the gains come against a backdrop of decreasing test scores on national math and reading tests. Education Secretary John B. King Jr. acknowledged worries about sa...

The Latest: NC GOP office damaged by fire, Nazi graffitiWASHINGTON — The Latest on the 2016 presidential campaign (all times EDT): 4:17 p.m. A local Republican Party office in North Carolina has been damaged by fire and someone spray-painted an anti-GOP slogan referring to "Nazi Republicans" on a nearby wall, authorities said Sunday. A news release from the town of Hillsborough said someone threw a bottle filled with flammable liquid through the window of the Orange County Republican Party headquar...

Bad cable delays comeback rocket launch from VirginiaCAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A bad cable delayed a rocket launch from Virginia on Sunday by a NASA shipper eager to make a strong comeback. Orbital ATK was poised to fly its Antares rocket with a load of supplies for the International Space Station, after being grounded for two years. But seven hours before the planned liftoff, NASA announced the flight was off until Monday night. The cable — part of ground support equipment at the Wallops Isla...

Nations seek deal to reduce HFCs; could dent global warmingKIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — Nations strove Friday for a deal to phase out hydrofluorocarbons from air conditioners and refrigerators as part of efforts to fight climate change. An agreement could put a half-degree Celsius dent in global warming by the end of the century, according to scientists. At issue are greenhouse gases far more powerful than carbon dioxide. HFCs, as they're known, were introduced in the 1980s as a substitute for ozone-depletin...

Time to go: North Carolina urges evacuations before flooding GREENVILLE, N.C. — Police officers and firefighters in eastern North Carolina cruised low-lying areas and shouted a simple message from bullhorns: Get out before the floodwaters from Hurricane Matthew arrive. Thousands of people were ordered to evacuate, and officials warned that some communities could be cut off by washed out roads or bridge closures. In the city of Greenville, military trucks rumbled through leafy neighborhoods where orange ...

AP FACT CHECK: Trump, Clinton and their debate claimsWASHINGTON — Donald Trump mischaracterized the record on Hillary Clinton's defense of her husband and her own treatment of women when he brought up Bill Clinton's sexual history and other episodes of the past. Clinton didn't give a square account of the fallout from her email practices. A look at some of the claims in the second presidential debate: TRUMP, asked whether the predatory behavior with women that he described in a 2005 video amount...

Takeaways: Trump aggressive, Clinton steady in tense debateST. LOUIS — His candidacy spiraling out of control, Donald Trump faced Hillary Clinton on the debate stage Sunday night in the most critical moment of his political career. Questions about Trump's preparation, policy knowledge and temperament all were overshadowed by the political fallout from Friday's release of a video that captured the Republican presidential nominee making predatory sexual comments about women a decade earlier. With tensio...

90 minutes of fire: Trump, Clinton trade charges, insultsST. LOUIS — In a bitter debate filled with tension and insult, Hillary Clinton declared that Donald Trump's vulgar comments about women reveal "exactly who he is" and prove his unsuitability to be president. Firing back, he accused her of attacking women involved in Bill Clinton's extramarital affairs and promised she would "be in jail" if he were president. Trump, who entered Sunday night's debate desperate to steady his floundering campaign,...

Hurricane's blow was less than feared; 'We are blessed'CHARLESTON, S.C. — A weakening Hurricane Matthew lashed Georgia and the Carolinas on Saturday in what appeared to be the last leg of its march up the East Coast, leaving in its wake millions of Americans relieved that one of the most fearsome storms on record in the U.S. wasn't that bad after all. The hurricane was blamed for at least 10 deaths in the U.S., including that of a 68-year-old Georgia man who died when two trees fell on his home. A...

Americans back at job huntWASHINGTON -- Drawn by steady hiring and slightly higher pay, more Americans began looking for work in September, a sign of renewed optimism about the U.S. job market. The influx of job seekers sent the unemployment rate up slightly as more Americans were counted as unemployed. Taken as a whole, Friday's jobs report from the government painted a picture of a resilient economy that could keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise interest rates...

A weakening Matthew rakes Atlantic coast; US death toll at 9CHARLESTON, S.C. — A fast-weakening Hurricane Matthew continued its march along the Atlantic coast Saturday, lashing two of the South's most historic cities and some of its most popular resort islands, flattening trees, swamping streets and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. The storm was blamed for at least nine deaths in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. In its long wake, it also left at least 470 dead in Haiti in one hard-hit d...

'This is not over': Hurricane sideswipes Florida coastCAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Hurricane Matthew sideswiped Florida's Atlantic coast Friday, toppling trees onto homes and knocking out power to more than 800,000 people but sparing the most heavily populated stretch of shoreline the catastrophic blow many had feared. Authorities warned that the danger was far from over, with hundreds of miles of coastline in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina still under threat of torrential rain and deadly storm su...

Debate minefield: Town hall will test '16 candidates' stagecraftWASHINGTON -- President George H.W. Bush conspicuously checked his watch. Al Gore got too close for comfort. Mitt Romney strode across stage to confront President Barack Obama face to face. For presidential candidates, a town hall debate is a test of stagecraft as much as substance. When Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump meet Sunday night in St. Louis, they'll be fielding questions from undecided voters seated nearby. In an added dose of unpred...

Superhero funeral honors 6-year-old fatally shot at schoolTOWNVILLE, S.C. — A 6-year-old boy who died after a teen gunman opened fire at his South Carolina elementary school was dressed as Batman in his small blue casket on Wednesday. Jacob Hall's family encouraged mourners at his funeral to dress as superheroes as well. "We want to honor Jacob, celebrate Jacob, in a way he would love," his great-aunt, Rebecca Hunnicutt, told the Anderson Independent-Mail (http://bit.ly/2dPTSqO). Jacob died from a bu...

Florida governor: 'If you're able to go early, leave now'People boarded up beach homes, schools closed and officials ordered evacuations along the East Coast on Wednesday as Hurricane Matthew tore through the Bahamas and took aim at Florida, where the governor urged coastal residents to "leave now" if they were able. Matthew was a dangerous and life-threatening Category 3 storm with sustained winds of 120 mph, and it was expected to be very near Florida's Atlantic coast by Thursday evening. At least...

AP FACT CHECK: Claims in the VP debateNot all the claims in the vice presidential debate stand up to scrutiny. A look at some of them and how they compare with the facts: DEMOCRAT TIM KAINE: While secretary of state, Hillary Clinton "worked a tough negotiation with nations around the world to eliminate the Iranian nuclear weapons program without firing a shot." REPUBLICAN MIKE PENCE: "Eliminate the Iranian nuclear weapons program?" KAINE: "Absolutely, without firing a shot." THE F...

Clinton, Trump battle fiercely over taxes, race, terrorHEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — In a combative opening debate, Hillary Clinton emphatically denounced Donald Trump Monday night for keeping his personal tax returns and business dealings secret from voters and peddling a "racist lie" about President Barack Obama. Businessman Trump repeatedly cast Clinton as a "typical politician" as he sought to capitalize on Americans' frustration with Washington. Locked in an exceedingly close White House race, the presid...